Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-04-19
WHAT IS MEANT

Elsewhere IN The GAZETTE to-day will
! be found an article taken from the Gal
weston News of last Friday. On its face.
this article is defense of Governor Ross
veto of the tax relief bill and evinces 6
tender soIicitude for the Governors pc
litical welfare that is very touching and
very unexpected and very commendable
in the News. But the service apparently
rendered the Governor would seem tc
have purpose apart from the generosity
to Ross, and what that Interior purpose
is no one may certainly know save the
newspaper with the fine Italian hand. Is
this generous defense of Governor Ross
unsullied by purpose of post-electioI
| fling at Mr.. Swain, or of forcing from
the Governor some declaration on the
pending prohibition contest? The News
cites the many acts of the Twentieth Leg
islature calculated to deplete the state
Treasury and thus "embarrass" the Gov
ernOr. Governor Ross is man of sense
| his signature can be found to all the acts
| cited by the News; he knows that the
tax relief bill was legislative response
to the cries of a people depressed; he
knows how earnestly he viewed the stu
alton presented to rim by the passage of
| that bill, and how his own feelings an
sWered back the petitions OF the people :;
he knows there was neither political nor
personal design in the passage of that re-
lief bill by his own patriotic purpose in
ct length deciding to veto it. This cita
ton of Legislative wastefulness is but 8
prelude to the play which is thus dis
closed:
Maxey and Reagan can with complacency,
and smaller prohibition leaders with pleasure,
contemplate acknowledgements they expect
to bring upon the Governor in the pending
campaign which threatens his party and ad-
minisTatiOn together for the time with com
mon defeat. His late chief adversary in the
contest for tn Democratic nomination also be
comes his foe as d prohibition advocate and
leader Colorel Swain is now an advanced
PrOhibltionist. If the Governor does not see
in all this a prohibition party and ticket In
opposition to him for q second term, he enjoys
a reputation for political sagacity to which he
Is not entitled. 1t was cunning under the cir
cumstanCes in the prohibition Legislature to
load him down with the tax postpOnen ent
while creating offices right and left, establish
ing new asYlums, and increasing the expenses
of government. 1t would by design or acct
dent crush a Democratic Governor that his late
opponents might the more readily attain revenge
together with office.
AS of the other acts cited as proof of
the legislative attempt to ''crush Dem
ocratic Governor" if that Governor OPP
posed the joint resolution submitting the
prohibition amendment such opposition
was not made public. Governor Ross
knows that the amendment, if adopted,
cannot become of force and effect until"the
Legislature snail, at the first session held
after its adoption, enact the necessary
laws to put it into effect" Governor Ross
knows that he alone can give "the signal
for an immediate session of the Legisla-
ture," and that the million dollar reduc-
ton cannot result from an amendment
which is not made operative
even by adoption. He knows that slI
this apprehension of bankruptcy during
his present administration through the
of the amendment is as silly as
it is baseless. The News may have in
tended to be generous to Ross as it was
to Swain, but that journal
must have small respect for the intelli-
gence of this democratic Governor" as
well as for that OF the people, to parade
million dollar reduction IN two years
from an amendment that is lifeless until
1889, unless this democratic Governor"
himself, calls special session in 1883,
and even if he did that, no million dollar
reduction could possibly befall his pres
ent administration.
In this matter the Galveston News has
a next friend in the San Antonio Express,
which comments on the million dollar re-
duCtiOn scarecrow as follows:
These statements be meat for men, my
brethren. They are a summary of political
trickery. They are more than this: A predic- !
ton of the disruption of the Democratic party !
Express would not go so far. But it does be- |
ieve that the Twentieth Legislature was
serious assailant of Democracy, and that its
actions are liable to give party leaders more
trouble than they dream OF now. Only in the |
presence of large majorities is such departure
from established Democratic doctrine possible |
The Republicans of the state lack organization. |
In that lies our safety. Soldly welded, and In
the event of the passage of the amendment, 1t !
Is nard to say what they might not do with the
future politics of Texas.
The attempt to "drag" the "Demo-
cratic Governor" of Texas into this pro-
nibition discussion will fail, because
Governor Ross is not only an honest man
ana sensible man and loyal Democrat, |
out is no spring chicken in politics.
Exall, Coke, Maxey, Reagan, ct al, re-
sisted the temptation to do aught that !
would embroil the Democratic party of |
Texas with this prohibition contest. The
Democratic party has declared the ques-
ton to be non-partisan. Any Democrat
or himself may bslieve it to be par
.isan measure and he may vote on it as
such, but the Democrat or Democrats